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Regular updates from students in TRIP

Let’s Take a TRIP! by Rhianna Zhang

3/20/2025

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Hi everyone! My name is Rhianna Zhang, and I am more than excited to embark on this TRIP! I’m currently a junior at Council Rock High School North in Newtown, PA. TRIP felt like the perfect fit for me because it grants me the freedom to create my own experiment on a topic that I’m curious about, while providing me with much-needed mentorship and resources along the way. Additionally, I have always wanted to pursue a career in STEM, and TRIP is a fantastic opportunity to connect me with like-minded peers!
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​Here’s a little bit about me. Outside of school, one of my favorite ways to spend my free time is playing video games with my friends– right now, our current obsession is Minecraft. Additionally, I love listening to music when doing anything and everything! Some of my favorite artists at the time are Cocteau Twins, Lana Del Rey, Wave to Earth, and my top artist of 2024 was Kendrick Lamar. I’m also a huge foodie and love eating at new restaurants (especially the ones trending on social media), and I have a terrible sweet tooth, which is one of the reasons why I chose my kickoff experiment, “How do Ginkgo Biloba and a high-sugar diet affect fly motility?” I’m so excited to see how this experiment will turn out!

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​At Council Rock North, I’m a captain of the Speech and Debate team, an activity that has turned me into both a leader and a public speaker, empowering me to mentor and make connections with my peers. I also cheer for my school’s competitive cheerleading team, a sport that is both challenging and enriching. I’m also involved in my school’s Student Government and Model UN and created a few STEM affinity clubs on my own that I am heavily dedicated to. These clubs center around creating a space for students to explore topics that are rarely addressed in my school’s standard curriculum and pre-existing extracurriculars. For example, I offer mentorship for programmers of all levels at the Computer Science club, be it designing a C# and Python curriculum for beginners or guiding upperclassmen through coding a neural network.

The first day of TRIP was equal parts fun and informative! Our icebreaker activity was not only helpful for learning my peer’s names but rewarding as well— I won a five-dollar Wawa gift card!  We also learned about and practiced using micropipettes, but my highlight of the day was taking fun group photos, where our TA’s shepherded us around the school and into different poses. We ended the day by performing some calculations and making fly food, and I took home my very own vial of flies to observe, which I will do so diligently. I cannot wait to see what my future will be like as I take this TRIP!
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​TRIP felt like the perfect fit for me because it grants me the freedom to create my own experiment on a topic that I’m curious about, while providing me with much-needed mentorship and resources along the way.
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The Beginning of My Journey with TRIP by Nuha Maryam

3/17/2025

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Hi everyone! I’m Nuha Maryam and I’m a sophomore at Conestoga High School.
​Ever since I was little, I’ve always enjoyed the outdoors. I love hiking, climbing trees, and basically anything that gets my hands dirty. My family and I love taking care of plants, so our house is filled with greenery. I’m also passionate about drawing. Although I’m not the most talented, sketching and doodling have always been something to do in my free time.
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​When it comes to academics, I have a passion for science and math. In AP Biology, I explored many fundamental concepts that have shaped the world we live in. I became fascinated by how simple experiments can make revolutionary breakthroughs that changed the world, like the Hershey-Chase experiment, which discovered that instead of proteins, it is DNA that stores the genetic material.
In addition to academics, I engage myself in many extracurriculars to serve the community and develop communication and leadership skills. I’m a member of Peer Mediation at my school, where I support peers and new students, contributing to a positive environment. Peer Mediation has given me the chance to guide others through an experience that I have been through myself of moving to a new school (6 times so far!). As a member of Key Club, I contribute to local service projects such as tutoring and taking part in community cleanups. These experiences have strengthened my ability to communicate and work collaboratively. I have a passion for animals, so I love volunteering at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) and the Sebastian Riding Association (SRA).
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​Today marked the beginning of my immersive research experience with TRIP. We began with an icebreaker to get to know each other. We learned about how to use micropipettes and started setting up our kickoff experiments. My research focus will be to study whether or not a high sugar diet affects female fertility. It was really fun to apply concepts that I’ve learned in AP Chemistry to today’s lesson, such as the concentration of solutions and basic equipment and procedures in the lab. I can’t wait to see what else TRIP has in store!
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The Start of My TRIP by Mitchell Morin

3/12/2025

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​Hello! I am Mitchell Morin and a junior from William Tennent HS, the home of TRIP. I’ve always been interested in STEM and have been part of my school’s robotics team since I joined in 7th grade. This year, I am proud to be the programming team lead. In addition to robotics, I have enjoyed numerous challenging science and CS courses that I’ve taken throughout high school. I hope to apply some of the knowledge I have learned in those classes, as well as all of the skills I will develop throughout TRIP, to meaningful, hands-on research unlike any opportunity I’ve had before.

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​During TRIP, I am excited to work with others who share my passions. I’m eager to collaborate with peers and mentors to overcome the various obstacles I will face and ultimately grow as a person. The skills that I gain from this program, such as critical thinking, data analysis, and (perhaps most importantly) communication, will translate directly towards my future journey after TRIP. Overall, I hope that I become more confident as a person and that some of the connections that I make with like-minded scientists will persist long after the program.

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​That being said, why jump ahead? Yesterday was the beginning of my TRIP experience, and it was a great day. It was a pleasure to meet everyone in session A and all of the great mentors! After the icebreaker activity, we explored the lab to familiarize ourselves with all of the materials and safety precautions. Then, we learned all about micropipettes (why are so many different things called pipettes anyway?) and how to use them. After that, we took some group photos before returning to the lab. Next, I solved some problems on diluting stock solutions to desired concentrations. I already had some experience with this in AP Chem, but it was a great review and reminder to always be careful with units. Finally, I began preparing four vials of fly food for my kickoff experiment, which is “How do Melatonin and a disrupted circadian rhythm affect female fertility rates?”. I definitely made mistakes, but I’m confident that I will learn from them and improve! Oh, and for my fellow Eagles fans, GO BIRDS!

​I’m eager to collaborate with peers and mentors to overcome the various obstacles I will face and ultimately grow as a person.
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First Day on My TRIP by Mia Perez

3/10/2025

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Hi everyone! I'm Mia Perez, a junior at the Creative and Performing Arts High School, where I major in instrumental music. I love music and science, so when I discovered this program opportunity to enhance my lab skills and conduct a research project, I knew I had to apply. Since taking Environmental Science in my Freshman year, I have developed a passion for labs and research. Trying each year to find opportunities to do lab research, I’m glad I found a program where I can not only do lab work but also combine all my work into a project I get to present. I hope to take my knowledge from this program and decide if it is the best career for me. (So far, so good. I have high hopes!!!)

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I am from Buenos Aires, Argentina, and moved to the U.S. when I was 7 years old. Although I’m also of Dominican descent. All my life I have been surrounded by a mix of Latin cultures, eating foods from both countries, learning the history of both countries through my family, and feeling connected to each still now after living in America for almost 10 years, visiting the countries whenever I can. 

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At CAPA (my high school) I mainly focus on playing the violin as it is my major, usually taking 3 major classes out of 8 classes total each year. I play in my school's orchestra, and chamber orchestra, and play violin outside of school in a program called AllCity that unites the teens around Philly schools to play all together at the Kimmel Center. I try my best to better the community around me. I am currently the secretary of my school’s Community Service Club, I'm part of the Student Council, I made a project to use music to help special needs kids, and I’m the advertisement head of the prom committee. I strive to make a positive impact on others whether that be inside the schools with school events, leading orientations for new kids, or outside the school like raising over 300 dollars from a Community Service event and donating to help women’s cancer research. 

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On our first day at TRIP, we got to know the other people in the program better through competitive bingo and a scavenger hunt. We also learned how to use micropipettes and learn about dilutions. Near the end, we each got our project question and made our fly food for the project, also given a fly family to take home (I’m a bit scared of it…). Overall, it was a great first day getting to know everyone and starting on a journey that I am going to love.
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Where Will the Rest of My TRIP Take Me? by Mekhriyona Ilkhomova

3/5/2025

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​Hi everyone! My name is Mekhriyona Ilkhomova from Northeast High School. When I found out about TRIP and the opportunity it would give me to get hands-on lab experience and even my own independent lab project, I got really excited. However, as it sank in, I began to get intimidated with this unfamiliar experience that I would have to jump into and do on my own. I decided to apply anyway in order to challenge myself. 

If there’s anything I’ve learned so far in my life, it is that every single time I ever did something that made me uncomfortable, I would always be successful or learn something really valuable. Never from getting out of my comfort zone did I lose anything, ever. I’ll say this, that dream that you think you are too inferior, too unqualified to chase, that step you’re too afraid to take is what would have pushed it over the edge. That action would have transformed into your passionate, glistening dream.
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I’ll tell you a story of a time I experienced this so that perhaps you may relate. There’s a business program at my school called DECA in which we compete with others in roleplays and exams. In 2023, I remember how I paced outside the doorway to the classroom and hesitated to walk into the meeting. I’ll just go tomorrow, I thought, trying to give myself an excuse. I began walking to the door, but something stopped me. I stood with my hands on the doorknob and thought why don’t I just check it out and if I don’t like it, I’ll never come back again. And so, with that, I turned back around. 

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When I went to that meeting, I found out that it was the last day before they had to turn in the names of all the competitors. I remember walking home and my head was hot and throbbing at having to process so much new information and make split second decisions on things I knew nothing about. But I did go back the following days, and it went much better. I became so inspired by the speech of my advisor, Mr. McNear, and decided I was going all in. I studied daily for hours on practice exams, roleplays, and performance indicators. I would spend any ounce of extra time I had to complete a few practice questions. On my first competition, I stood around everyone else with their beautiful blazers and dress pants. Here was a group like I had never seen before. People my age who were professional, mature, and polished. I felt inferior among a group of intelligent people. So, after the competition, you can imagine how utterly stunned I was when I placed first. I genuinely couldn’t believe it when they called my name to the stage nor could I believe the cold, metal trophy I held like a misplaced object in my hands, all the way back home.

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None of this would have happened if I had not done something different that I wasn’t completely comfortable with. Rather, I moved forward to discover and then put my head down and worked. This is indeed a big world, and my goal is to go out and learn as much about it as I can. It can be scary, it can be uncomfortable, and at times it could even bring more harm than good, but ultimately the experience and the self-development along the journey will be far more extraordinary.

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Applying for TRIP gave me that same feeling of self-doubt and discomfort, but learning from my previous experiences, I decided to move forward with it. It was my first day yesterday and I’m absolutely in love. At the beginning, doing all the math was frustrating but Dr. Valdes and Dr. Purdy were right by my side to help me. I moved on to making my fly food with the help of Dr. Austria. I am in love with this program because of their principles. Dr. Austria would not tell me the answer. Instead, she would ask me questions until I figured it out. She was very patient, giving me the space to think critically. As I started to get the hang of things, I found that this was kind of fun. At that moment I thought that I might have just finally found it— the thing I am passionate about. I won’t speak too soon though. What I will say is that just on the first day, I can tell my research and experimentation in this program will help me learn and develop tremendously. For now, I’ll put my best effort in and see where the rest of my TRIP takes me.

​This is indeed a big world, and my goal is to go out and learn as much about it as I can. It can be scary, it can be uncomfortable, and at times it could even bring more harm than good, but ultimately the experience and the self-development along the journey will be far more extraordinary.
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Embarking on A Wonderful TRIP by Richard Li

3/3/2025

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​Hi everyone! My name is Richard Li, and my real name is Jiacheng Li. I am a sophomore at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy. I am an international student from China, and I would love to share with you a glimpse into my life!
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​I am an extrovert and love to make friends. I also love to challenge myself with new things, so I thrive in new environments and enjoy meeting new people. I love listening to jazz and R&B, and right now my favorite artists are Laufey, Daniel Ceasar, and Frank Ocean. I also love to travel, especially to beautiful beaches! I’ve been to Maldives, the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia. My favorite subject at school, of course, is biology. I also love to learn new languages and am currently learning French and Japanese.

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Before coming to the US, I grew up in a small city called Changzhi in the Shanxi province of China. I was in the strict public school system where physical punishment still exists. My mom then brought me to Beijing to attend an international school for middle school, where I found interest in international education. I persuaded my mom to send me to a US high school because I wanted to immerse myself in a diverse culture and experience a freer education system. I chose Philly because of its rich history and vibrant and diverse community—and, of course, its amazing Chinatown!

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​At school, I am on the varsity rowing team. I also serve duties like student council, honor council, and student ambassadors. I am also part of the Model UN team. My school offers a program called the Center for Entrepreneurship and Leadership, where students can launch their own projects like a business, nonprofit, or product. Through that, I started my nonprofit called Shanxi LifeSpark Initiative, which raises awareness about Black Lung Disease Patients (mostly coal miners) in Shanxi. Growing up in Shanxi, a region heavily impacted by the coal industry, inspired me to start this project. We’re also fundraising by selling local art products to purchase oxygen concentrators for underprivileged families affected by the disease.

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​The first day was so much fun, and it was amazing to meet my colleagues who share the same interest in STEM as me! For my kickoff experiment, I will be testing the effect of Holy Basil and intestinal inflammation on anxiety. I cannot wait to dive into the research and learn alongside my interesting colleagues in the upcoming sessions!
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A TRIP Worth Taking by Hannah Tong

2/26/2025

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Hi guys! My name is Hannah Tong, and I am currently a junior at Harriton High School. I originally heard of TRIP through my academic seminar teacher and was immediately interested because I thought it would be a great way to connect what I learn in the classroom with real-life scenarios! I feel like there’s definitely a gap between doing labs in school and an actual job in research, which is why I really appreciate the chance to be a part of TRIP@WTHS’25! I want to work in the medical field in the future, so TRIP will have a huge impact on whether I want to pursue a career in the lab or go down a different route. Regardless, I’m definitely going to push myself and have some fun with the amazing people here! ​

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A little about me outside the program: I LOVE creating and collecting little trinkets (mystery boxes are my weakness and probably the reason I will go broke). I have a shelf above my bed filled to the brim with cute figures, little crafts, and gifts. I’ve been doing art for about nine years and am head of Zenith, which is our school's art club, as well as a member of our service league (HSL) and the technology student association (TSA). Just this weekend I was running a hygiene kit packaging event at MLK Day at Lower Merion High School and competed in regionals for TSA. I actually quite enjoy a busy weekend because it helps me stay productive, plus the satisfying feeling of crossing an item off your list is hard to beat.

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For our first day of TRIP, we learned how to use micropipettes and set up our flies’ food for the kickoff experiment. My experimental question is whether vitamin D and head trauma affect mobility, and I’m very much interested in what the results will be. I'm also excited to be able to work with the flies next session, even if I do feel a little bad that I’ve got to give them head trauma. It’s only been a few hours since the start of the program, and I already know that I’m going to learn a lot and get to know some really wonderful people. Huge shoutout to our TAs, Phoebe, Martie, and Amritha, for some killer group photos, as well as a massive thank you to Dr. Purdy, Dr. Austria, Dr. Valdes, and Mr. Cozzone for an amazing first session, and I can’t wait till next week!
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It’s only been a few hours since the start of the program, and I already know that I’m going to learn a lot and get to know some really wonderful people.
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Flying Into New Horizons by Jessica Joseph

2/24/2025

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Hello everyone! My name is Jessica Joseph. I am a junior at Conestoga High School, where I am the founder, president, and ambassador of the Lingua Link Club, an ENGin chapter. The mission of Lingua Link is to serve as a Ukrainian language and culture club that provides a platform for students to tutor English to children in a warzone, share culture and history, and foster empathy and understanding for Ukrainian students. I am also the Lead Copy Editor in my school’s Literary Magazine, known as The Folio, encouraging creativity among students with literary and artistic talents. Within the school environment I am a peer mediator and peer tutor.

​During my free time, I engage in a range of extracurricular activities. I enjoy photography, painting still life, and dancing. To nurture a love for the sciences among young children I initiated a science reading program at the local library. Apart from this, I volunteer at the local soup kitchen. I also volunteer at a hospice while being a bedside companion that provides emotional support and overall wellbeing.
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​My love for the sciences was ignited in freshman year. While learning about cellular biology, I was intrigued and fascinated by the role of the cell and cellular regeneration. Realizing its potential and incorporation in the process of battling cancer, I researched upon this topic. I was able to publish my research paper (on Immune Cell Regeneration and Multiple Myeloma Cancer). My pursuit of scientific inquiry and knowledge led me to apply to TRIP.

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As I have embarked on this journey, I gained hands-on experience with micropipetting, making solutions and dilutions, assembling fly food in vials, laboratory procedures, and observing the developmental process of Drosophila Melanogaster (Fruit Fly). All this while having fun and making new friends and connections. I hope to fly into new horizons through this program backed by research and laboratory experimentation.

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My Beginning of TRIP! by Hanaa Saleem

2/19/2025

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Hello! My name is Hanaa Saleem, and I am currently a junior at the Downingtown STEM Academy. I am so excited to be a part of TRIP; I am especially looking forward to getting to know my peers and learning about how to conduct an independent research project. As for my career aspirations, I hope to go into a science related field in the future, specifically something related to neurology or psychology with a minor in creative writing.

I am also a member of HOSA, where I have participated in the Researched Persuasive Writing and Speaking and Nutrition Testing events. I was privileged to get the opportunity to compete at the International Level Conference, and it was so interesting to see people around the world come together under the same topic of medicine and sciences. Some of my favorite memories there included trading pins, the interesting street art, and amazing food. My group and I were able to explore the city in our free time and we saw so many unique sights!
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One of my hobbies is to take pictures of sunsets. The most beautiful one I have captured so far is on my home screen! I also love to hang out with my friends and family. Recently we went to Disney World and Universal. My most favorite activities there were seeing the fireworks at Magic Kingdom and the show that went with it. There were clips of all the Disney movies projected across the front of the castle. I also really loved the Moana—Journey of Water in Epcot where there were so many magic water tricks to try out and a live rendition of Te Fiti.

Switching gears a little bit, during my time at TRIP, I will be studying, “How do Ginkgo Biloba and head trauma affect anxiety?” I am so excited to start this journey and look forward to everything that is to come!
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Embarking On a New Journey: TRIP by Danny Nguyen

2/12/2025

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Hello everyone! My name is Danny Nguyen and I’m a junior at Julia R. Masterman High School. I was born and raised in North Philadelphia throughout most of my life. In my free time, I enjoy watching horror movies (no… like I LOVE watching horror movies). My favorite is The Conjuring…even though I fell off my chair watching it for the first time. When I first heard about TRIP, I knew I had to apply because it was a great opportunity to meet new people and see what the biomedical field was like. At TRIP, I want to challenge myself in learning a whole new field and see the fun of experimenting with fruit flies. Fun Fact: I have a fear of birds and flies so hopefully I’ll learn to overcome those things too!
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I’m also involved in school activities and other extracurriculars. I started a coding club named Power In Code, where we teach students basic web development and coding skills to over 40+ students. I also started an ACS Chemistry Club chapter at my school where we do labs, workshops, and chemistry activities to nurture a passion for science. The most memorable thing we made was creating different shades of substances from food coloring to form a rainbow and creating DIY slime from glue and borax! I’m also a part of my school’s Science Olympiad team where I won 3rd place in Disease Detectives at the Girls High Invitational! However, one fun thing I’m most proud of was winning a business competition where I led my team of 4 in pitching an app prototype called Wanderer and received a $2,000 award! Wanderer is an exploration app that lets users explore places of interest around their area. You can access our prototype here! 

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Apart from that, I was a former 4 sport athlete for 2 years where I played soccer, lacrosse, basketball, and ultimate frisbee (I also did Track and Field for a short moment…). I was the starting point guard for my school’s JV basketball team and was on the Varsity frisbee team since freshman year. I love playing pick-up basketball with friends and enjoying the intensity of the game as well as competitively playing ultimate frisbee. The most exciting moment in my frisbee career was going up against the 3rd ranked team in the nation, Wissahickon High School! Although we lost, that was the game where I fell in love with frisbee and gained a competitive nature for frisbee.
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In college, I want to major in chemical engineering with a minor in A.I. After high school, I want to pursue biotechnology and the biomedical field where I want to specialize in computational chemistry, bioinformatics, and A.I. complemented with skills in wet-lab to be a well-rounded researcher. I believe what I do at TRIP will help me achieve my ultimate goal; which is to develop a treatment/drug that will positively impact people worldwide. I aspire to be a research scientist at a Biotechnology company and be involved in developing treatments and medicine that’ll aid others in battling major diseases like diabetes, cancer, and other life-threatening diseases. Like many great scientists before, I dream of curing diseases in millions, if not, billions of people globally someday.
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